How do lenders count rent on a vacant rental?

What replaces a lease when a rental is vacant?

The appraiser's market rent analysis fills that role on a conventional purchase: Fannie Mae requires Form 1007 or Form 1025 to support subject property rent, and a lease copy only when a lease is being transferred to the borrower.

• Form 1007 is the Single-Family Comparable Rent Schedule.
• Form 1025 is the Small Residential Income Property Appraisal Report.
• B3-3.8-02 requires a fully executed lease on a purchase when a lease is being transferred to the borrower.
• B3-3.8-01 also lists Form 1007 as a source for documenting monthly gross rent.

Exception: These are Fannie Mae rules for loans sold to Fannie Mae, and B3-3.8-02 also covers 2- to 4-unit principal residences with added conditions. A DSCR lender sets its own documentation and may ask for a lease, a rent schedule or both.

According to Selling Guide B3-3.8-02, Rental Income from the Subject Property (09/02/2026), Fannie Mae, as of October 2026.

For an investor, the appraisal is now doing two jobs: valuing the property and setting the rent the loan will be sized on. Send the appraiser your rent comps, renovation list and any signed lease before the inspection, because a market rent that comes in light shrinks the loan the same way a low value does.

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How much of the market rent counts?

On a conventional purchase, B3-3.8-02 counts 75% of monthly gross rent as net rental income and then subtracts the property's PITIA to reach adjusted net rental income.

Exception: Many DSCR lenders divide full rent by the payment rather than using 75% of it. Confirm the method, and which rent figure goes in, with each lender.

According to Selling Guide B3-3.8-02, Fannie Mae, as of October 2026.

Run the same property through a full-rent DSCR calculation and the picture changes. $2,400 of rent over a $1,700 payment is a ratio of about 1.41, while the conventional calculation leaves you $100 a month of qualifying income. Same unit, same rent, two very different answers, which is exactly why the method question matters more than the rate on the first call.

For how the two loan types compare beyond rent, see the DSCR and conventional side-by-side.

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What if the lease rent and market rent don't match?

If current market rents do not reasonably support the gross rent on the lease, B3-3.8-02 requires the lender to justify the rent with a written analysis showing the income is stable, or use the lesser amount.

• If the lease is above market and the lender cannot justify it, then the lesser amount is used; B3-3.8-02 does not name the two figures, and the common reading is that the market rent controls.
• If the lease is below market, then the market-rent test does not apply, but the refinance calculation still runs on the lease amount.
• On a refinance where the property is not on Schedule E, B3-3.8-02 multiplies the lease amount by 75% and subtracts PITIA.

Exception: Short-term rentals follow a separate Selling Guide topic, B3-3.8-03, with its own documentation rules.

According to Selling Guide B3-3.8-02, Fannie Mae, as of October 2026.

The below-market lease is the one that surprises people. Sign a friendly tenant at $300 under market to fill the unit fast, and the refinance calculation, which runs on the lease amount, holds your qualifying rent to that number. Fill vacancies at market before you refinance, not after.

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What should I ask a DSCR lender about a vacant unit?

Ask which rent figure the lender uses, whether it applies a vacancy factor, and whether a vacant unit at closing changes the maximum LTV or the price.

1. Do you use the appraiser's market rent, a signed lease, or the lesser of the two?
2. Do you use full rent, or apply a vacancy or expense factor before calculating the ratio?
3. Does a unit vacant at closing lower the maximum LTV or add a pricing adjustment?
4. For a short-term rental, what income figure do you use, and from what data source?
5. If I sign a lease after the appraisal, will you update the rent before closing?

Exception: Answers vary by lender and change over time. Get them in writing before the appraisal is ordered.

For comparison, the conventional answer to question 2 is 75% of monthly gross rent on a purchase, according to Selling Guide B3-3.8-02, Fannie Mae, as of October 2026.

Ask all five before the appraisal, because the answers change which appraisal form and which rent evidence you need. A financing professional who shops several lenders can compare how each program treats an empty unit.

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